


Scars

by Marauderess5



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Emotional Constipation, Gen, Human Disaster Anakin Skywalker, Hurt Obi-Wan Kenobi, Hurt/Comfort, I mean he gets the crap beaten out of him and ???, Missing Scene, Mother Hen Cody, Obi-Wan Needs a Hug, PTSD, Post-episode: s04e11: Kidnapped, These idiots need to sit down and talk, This episode needed more Obi-Wan Angst, Zygerria, no one knows how to communicate, references to slavery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-09-26
Packaged: 2018-12-29 18:19:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12090714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marauderess5/pseuds/Marauderess5
Summary: After engaging in "aggressive negotiations" with Zygerrian slaver D'Nar, Obi-Wan is barely holding himself together. Anakin isn't doing much better.A one-shot that takes place towards the tail end of the Clone Wars episode "Kidnapped."





	Scars

**Author's Note:**

> I needed more h/c so I added more h/c. And with that, of course, comes more angst. Plus! a bit more thematic resonance, maybe. Hopefully. Let me know your thoughts!

Obi-Wan Kenobi powered down his lightsaber with a hint of apprehension, watching Anakin and Ahsoka Force-leap onto D’Nar’s departing shuttle. He could feel Anakin’s fury buffeting through the Force and he knew, in an instant of clarity, that the mission was far from over… and that more hardship was to come.

Obi-Wan’s vision blurred as his headache swelled to a fever pitch. He scratched at the drying blood behind his ear while attempting a few stabilizing breaths through broken ribs. He closed his eyes, swallowing the pain, and sent a silent prayer to his grand-padawan: _Please keep him in line, Ahsoka_.

 _Beep beep._ “General? General Kenobi, come in.” Obi-Wan tapped his comlink, wincing as the movement tugged at his midsection. “Kenobi here.” His voice sounded distant to his own ears.

“It's Cody. General Skywalker and Commander Tano are in pursuit of the slaver, and all bombs have been deactivated. Awaiting your instructions.”

Obi-Wan frowned, discovering a host of thrilling new aches in the process. Thinking was taking way too much effort. “I expect we’ll be hearing from Anakin soon enough,” he answered finally. “In the meantime, pack everything up and get ready to leave this wretched planet. I have a feeling the colonists are no longer here.”

“Confirmed, sir.”

Obi-Wan was about to lower his arm when his comlink crackled again. “General, do you need a lift? We saw the explosion from the tower…”

Though no one was around to see it, Obi-Wan couldn’t stop the smile that crinkled his eyes. Cody knew it was hopeless to ask straight out if his general needed any medical assistance, but he damn well was going to try to help him out anyway.

“Thanks, Cody, but I’m close enough to your position,” Obi-Wan said, already limping his way back to the tower. “Make sure the wounded are tended to. I’ll be there soon.”

There was a pause at the other end of the line, and then: “Very good, sir.”

* * *

 It took Obi-Wan much longer to reach the troops than he had hoped; he had to stop and rest his throbbing forehead against the cool stone walls more than once, when the comfort of the Force proved lacking. But when he stepped into the clearing, he looked every bit the stoic, stately Jedi councilor and general that he was.

Or, so he thought.

Cody trotted up to him, his face betraying a bizarre mixture of relief and poorly disguised shock. “General…”

It was then that Obi-Wan realized another clone was standing next to Cody, staring at him with the exact same look of concern. Or was Obi-Wan starting to see double? It was all very confusing when dealing with hundreds of identical humans.

Obi-Wan blinked the double image away and gingerly touched a finger to his swollen, purpling face. “It’s really not as bad as it looks, Cody,” he quipped.

Cody grimaced. “What happened?”

Obi-Wan steadied himself on a nearby crate as the clearing began to spin, his stomach churning in response. “Well, I had to distract D’Nar while Anakin and Ahsoka disarmed the bombs,” he said, as though that settled the matter once and for all.

Cody titled his head in confusion. “And you didn’t bother fighting back?”

“I didn’t…” Obi-Wan blinked. “I didn’t know how long…”

Cody fought back an exasperated smile. _Of course_ General Kenobi could have incapacitated the slaver lord in half a heartbeat if he put his mind to it, and Kenobi himself knew that. But leave it to him to be genuinely befuddled when asked to explain himself for holding back.

Still, Cody wondered if there was something else at play here...

Inwardly, he shrugged. Not his place to question his general.

“I see,” Cody said, as Obi-Wan’s faraway gaze snapped back to the present. “Well, let’s get you patched up–”

“No, no,” Obi-Wan interrupted, ignoring the twinge of agony that rippled through _oh Force EVERYWHERE_ as he straightened up. “These wounds will heal.” His thoughts flashed to Anakin, wondering, not for the first time, what he had endured as a slave. “Let’s see what we found out from the planetary bio-scan. We need to find these colonists before it’s too late.”

He patted Cody’s shoulder as he passed by, leaning on him heavily for a split second before dropping his hand and walking calmly, if a bit stiffly, into the awaiting shuttle.

Cody watched him go, and then turned back to his men.

Orders were orders, after all.

* * *

It wasn’t until they were all gathered for a debriefing in the flagship that Cody saw the general again, looking wearier than before and distinctly un-healed. Cody tried to catch his eye – or what he could see of it under the swelling mass of bruises – but Kenobi was standing off to the side, engrossed in a datareader.

Well, they were all gathered except General Skywalker, who had swept in like a Kamino storm cloud and then disappeared to the rec room to “decompress,” according to Commander Tano.

General Kenobi commented on Skywalker’s absence with a frown and nothing more. 

After the debrief, Cody made his way to the ship’s rec room. It was empty save for a single occupant.

Anakin Skywalker was a blur of frenetic movement, blue lightsaber slicing through the air so quickly it was almost a blinding white. Most of the decommissioned droid parts the men had brought in for target practice were reduced to scrap metal by Skywalker’s screaming saber.

He whirled around, sensing Cody’s presence. “Yes?”

For the second time that day, Cody merely stared. Skywalker’s eyes...it looked like he was burning from within. No – Cody blinked – that made no sense. It had been a long day…

“Cody,” Skywalker prompted, voice pitched lower than usual with controlled calm.

Cody straightened, still holding his helmet under his arm. “Sorry to interrupt you, General,” he said. “I just wondered if… if you had seen General Kenobi.”

Skywalker powered down his lightsaber and crossed his arms. “He wasn’t at the briefing?”

“No, he was.” Cody hedged, unsure how to continue.

Most of the time, Skywalker and Kenobi were so in sync, they moved as though occupying a single organism. Other times, getting the two to communicate was like wrangling a pair of krayt dragons. And Cody, warrior that he was, felt ill-equipped for the task.

Cody felt the heat in Skywalker’s gaze, but he met it squarely with his own. “He was knocked around pretty bad, but he’s refusing to go to the med bay.”

Skywalker frowned as though in irritation, but his eyebrows came together in concern. “You know he always lies about his condition,” Skywalker said. “Obi-Wan could be bleeding out of every orifice and he would say he’s fine.” He moved around to begin tidying up the wreckage of machinery at his feet, keeping his eyes on the ground. “I’m sure if you herd him in the right direction, he’ll eventually consent.”

Cody stood unmoving. “With all do respect, sir, I don’t think he will.”

Skywalker finally looked up. “What do you mean?”

The room suddenly felt very small as Cody attempted to explain his unease. “It just… it seems different this time,” he said. “There’s something else on his mind, I think. Almost like… almost like he feels guilty, or something.”

“ _What_?” Skywalker scoffed. “Why?”

Cody just shrugged. “Will you talk to him? He’ll listen to you.”

“I doubt that,” Skywalker muttered.

Cody fidgeted. He’d prefer hours on the battlefield to five more minutes of this conversation.

Skywalker ran a hand through his already ruffled hair. “I’m sorry, Cody,” he sighed. “I’m not feeling myself. I appreciate your concern, and I’ll… go talk to Obi-Wan.”

Cody nodded. “Thanks, General.”

* * *

 When Anakin finally found him, it was pretty much by accident; somewhat alarmingly, he couldn’t sense his former master through the Force, and somehow Obi-Wan had found a darkened corner of the ship that lurked just out of sight. 

Obi-Wan was perched on the floor, unmoving, lower back against the cold, durasteel wall. His knees were drawn into his chest, head bowed against his arms. He looked very small.

At first Anakin thought there was something wrong with his Force perception, or with their bond, but then Anakin realized that Obi-Wan was shielding himself, actually cutting himself off from all other life forms in the vicinity. Including –

“Are you hiding from me?” Anakin asked, miffed.

Without raising his head or giving any other indication that he registered Anakin’s presence, Obi-Wan rattled a sigh. His muffled response barely reached his former padawan’s ears. “It’s not all about you, Anakin.”

That stung – he got enough of the _Chosen One_ bantha poodoo from others without Obi-Wan joining in. “Thank you for the lesson, _Master_ ,” Anakin replied, frustration from the failure of his mission coloring his voice with added venom. He stood stock-still for another moment, his anger gradually depleting with the concerned realization that Obi-Wan still hadn’t moved. Or lowered his shields.

Well. Maybe it was time Anakin lowered his.

Anakin’s shoulders drooped as he knelt down in front of his master. “Obi-Wan…” he began softly.

Finally, Obi-Wan lifted his head, and Anakin bit back a gasp. Obi-Wan’s face was purpling from a series of bruises Anakin couldn’t even begin to differentiate. _D’Nar…_ Anakin’s rage was palpable now. But before Anakin could say anything, Obi-Wan, abruptly, quirked a smile. “You should see the other guy,” he said, eyes bright and expression inscrutable.

Anakin’s face hardened. “I did.”

Obi-Wan said nothing. His eyes remained on Anakin, who suddenly seemed to be a million light years away.

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan laid a hand on his arm, sending a comforting tendril through the Force in an attempt to bridge the yawning chasm that separated him from his padawan. “Come back.”

Anakin blinked, but there was still a deep and sickly anger in his eyes. 

Obi-Wan felt a sudden chill, but he fought it down. “I can’t…” His heart clenched as he was buffeted by his padawan’s unfiltered emotions: grief, doubt, and so much anger. _I can’t bring him peace…_ Obi-Wan dropped his hand to his midsection and let out a shaky breath, embracing the pain that tweaked at his ribs. “I can’t carry the wounds of your past for you,” he whispered, wearily closing his eyes. Anakin felt the presence of a sadness other than his own, and a steady undercurrent of profound, wrenching guilt.

The realization hit him like a plasma grenade to the chest, as Anakin took in his friend’s bruised, battered face, his clenched fists, and the tightness of his breaths.

An insidious current of self-hatred coursed through Anakin. How could he be so _blind_ sometimes?

It was Obi-Wan who spoke first.

“We will bring him to justice, Anakin. I promise.”

Anakin swallowed. “I believe you, Master.” _But the kind of justice I intend to bring may look different than yours,_ he thought. _And I’d do it not just for myself, but for you, and for everyone who has suffered at the hands of slaver scum like D’Nar._

_I won’t let them hurt anyone I care about. Not again. Not ever._

He plastered a smile on his face. “So, Master Kenobi! Can I take you to the med bay now?”

Obi-Wan shot him a bemused look as he began to struggle to his feet. “I know how to get there, thank you.”

“Do you?” Anakin teased. “ I thought you might have forgotten, since you haven’t visited one in, what, three days?” He reached out to steady Obi-Wan as he staggered into a standing position, wincing.

“Three _weeks_ ,” Obi-Wan said, almost wistfully.

Anakin heaved a theatrical sigh, and Obi-Wan knew their discussion was over. Which was fine by him; his vision was suddenly refusing to focus on a single point.

Obi-Wan’s smile became a grimace, and Anakin shot him a look that he could have only picked up from Obi-Wan himself.

“Alright, Anakin, I'm going,” Obi-Wan groused, placing his palm on the wall for support.

“ _We’re_ going,” Anakin corrected, reaching for Obi-Wan's elbow. Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. Anakin patted his shoulder and smiled impishly while moving to support his master’s weight. “I don't trust you to go on your own.”

They trudged their way through the ship with Obi-Wan still attempting to project a dignified air, but the comforting presence of his former padawan by his side lulled him into a more relaxed state. Even so, he was aware of Anakin’s still turbulent Force presence; he was grateful for the supporting around around his back, but he noticed that Anakin's mechanical arm gripped his a bit too tightly.

His dizziness increased as they entered the med bay and different arms replaced Anakin’s. Obi-Wan was eased down onto a cot, and he caught sight of Anakin’s darkened, blurring figure hovering nearby.

 _I_ can _help him with his anger,_ Obi-Wan thought fuzzily, as the room swam out of focus and unconsciousness moved in to claim him.

_I must…._

**Author's Note:**

> Narrator: He didn't.


End file.
